Magnolia Web Strategy

This is a great example of a small organization leveraging its networks to raise money in a short period of time.

One thing I think they did a great job at was approach this process as a campaign – and they gave it everything they had for a finite period of time, thereby engaging their supporters, building their networks, escalating the excitement of the campaign right through to the final day, and then it was complete.

Read the article:

The goal was simple. Earn a permanent spot on the GlobalGiving website by raising at least $4000 online from 50 individual donors in three weeks. Win up to $6000 in additional bonuses for out-fundraising the 70 other participating organizations.

The challenge was daunting. How does Critical Exposure, a little non-profit with a small group of supporters raise more money than the dozens of other participating organizations, many of whom have a large, established fundraising base?

The answer was clear. Use an array of social media channels — including Twitter, Facebook and crowd-sourcing to turn our small group of tech savvy supporters into a powerful fundraising force.

Full story at the Frogloop blog.

Do you know why you’re using Twitter? Do you know what kind of returns you’re getting from your account and all those followers?

Avoid the “time-suck” of social media, and learn how to put your accounts to work for you.

Here’s a place to start: the Twitter 101 Guide for Business. Published by the Twitter folks themselves.

Really great pointers from ImpactMax

So, how do nonprofits start thinking about and planning for this new paradigm? Not surprisingly, the world of social media offers some important clues. These rapidly evolving tools are creating a global conversation that’s fueling the paradigm shift, and in the process they’re modeling some of the behaviors that point to future success. After all, the title of this year’s U.S. Web 2.0 Expo is “The Power of Less.”

1. Be nimble but think long-term

Using social media, people can put things out there and start to communicate very quickly, seizing the moment.  But often, ultimate success depends on their strategy to build participation and support over time. (You don’t start out with 25,000 Twitter followers.) The sustainability paradigm is about long-term survival. For nonprofits, that means balancing the ability to turn on a dime with a steady eye on the future. Resist fear-based crisis thinking and strive for focused clarity. Respond quickly when it’s advantageous or necessary, but make sure even your quickest actions are in the long-term best interest of your organization.

Read the full article over at ImpactMax

For all those non-profit questions about whether to get a Facebook profile or a page, and how to use both really well, here’s a trough of answers and resources:

Profiles VS Pages
Profiles are for individuals, Pages for Organizations
Recently redesigned pages to be more like profiles
Pages are optimized for mass communication
Profiles are optimized for individual communication

Note that their TOS says you can’t create for an individual who doesn’t exist.  If you do, they will delete it. (Some of you may remember the flap about Ranger Rick from 2007)

A question that everyone asks – “When should my group set up a Fan Page versus a Facebook Group?
Best Answer yet:   Set up a Facebook FanPage as your main presence or outpost and use a group for more adhoc, smaller organizing.

Read: So You Want A Facebook Fan Page?

The dreaded “It Depends” answer is the bane of existence for a lot of corporate communicators trying to get involved in social media.

We want shortcuts. We want a kit of parts, turn-key, that we can plug and play. (We did love the Chia Pet after all. Just add water.)

We’re accustomed to standards and rules of engagement and largely accepted practices that someone has captured in a textbook somewhere. We look to “best practices” and the road that someone has safely paved before us. It’s reassurance for us that we’re “doing it right”.

Read the full article over at the Altitude Branding blog.

Very worth your time to read all the posts and advice.

Facebook  has been adding new functions and features that enable Companies, Non Profits and Individuals to promote their brand, raise money and increase sales and have conversations with their communities and networks.

Facebook’s user base is reportedly  approaching 300 Million and still growing fast. Twitter is becoming mainstream. Online video usage is up 53% in the last 12 months on sites such as YouTube as Social Media continues to revolutionise the Web. How to use this fast emerging media is a constant challenge.

Read: 7 Great Resources on Using Facebook For Your Non Profit Organisation, Personal Brand and Company

By Lini S. Kadaba, Inquirer Staff Writer

Living Beyond Breast Cancer has won supporters for one of its biggest fund-raisers with e-mail blasts, brochures, and personal calls to big donors.

But that’s so yesterday.

For the first time, the nonprofit based in Haverford is posting to its new Facebook page information on this year’s Yoga Unites event, which takes place Sunday. It also is tweeting on Twitter as @YU4LBBC and uploading video to YouTube.

Of course, Living Beyond also blogs, and it shares photos on Flickr, including one of women saluting the sun on the steps of the Art Museum, where the annual Yoga Unites takes place.

Full article at Philadelphia Inquirer